Russian Revolution centenary

How revolution spread across Russia’s empire

20 June 2017
Beginning in the capital Petrograd, the revolution quickly convulsed the vast Russian empire in struggles

How do you deal with debate during a revolution?

20 June 2017
It’s a myth that the Bolsheviks were repressive dictators. Open debate was central to their revolutionary method

Alexander Kerensky was loyal to the war but a traitor to the revolution

06 June 2017
Alexander Kerensky started out on the side of the revolution but betrayed workers’ and soldiers’ demands for an end to the war

The sailors of Kronstadt saw the best and the worst of the Russian revolution

30 May 2017
Working class sailors in the Baltic Fleet were the revolution’s powerhouse—and later the victims of its isolation and decline

Why did ‘soviets’ matter?

23 May 2017
Most of the media and mainstream politicians don’t think much of ordinary people.

Will only downtrodden workers fight back?

16 May 2017
War and hunger sparked the Russian Revolution in 1917, but will only such desperate conditions lead to a revolution?

Hope, Tragedy, Myths—British Library throws the book at the Russian Revolution

02 May 2017
The British Library’s new Russian Revolution exhibition has some fantastic artefacts but a poor conclusion, writes Sarah Bates

Russia 1917—new book is a weapon against the right

02 May 2017
As the centenary of the Russian Revolution progresses, shelves in bookshops are beginning to groan under the weight of books about 1917.

May Day in Russia, 1917 - a beacon to workers across the world

25 April 2017
May Day 1917 saw massive celebrations in Russia—but tension was brewing against the provisional government

Stalin was the embodiment of a counter-revolution

18 April 2017
Joseph Stalin wrote to his Bolshevik party comrade Lev Kamenev in 1912, “I kiss you on the nose, Eskimo-fashion. Dammit! I miss you something awful. I miss you like hell, I swear. I have no one, not a soul to have a proper talk with, damn you.”

Only taking the revolution beyond Russia could save it from ruling classes' attack

11 April 2017
The internationalism of the Bolsheviks challenged the ideology of the war and posed a threat to the world’s capitalists

How Lenin won the Bolshevik party to fight for workers’ power

04 April 2017
A sharp argument within the Bolshevik party stopped it from supporting imperialist war—and helped push the revolution forward

Organising at work helped to protect the Russian Revolution

04 April 2017
Workers flocked to join unions during the Russian Revolution—but as they grew bigger, so did their contradictions

Lenin sought to unite workers in struggle

21 March 2017
Our rulers caricature the Bolsheviks who led the Russian Revolution because they are afraid of a repeat

Simmering Petrograd was ready to boil over

14 March 2017
Rapid capitalist development in Russian cities gave birth to a working class that dug the Tsar and capitalism’s grave

February 1917 - when workers remade history

07 March 2017
A century ago this week in Russia, the February Revolution ended an ancient dictatorship and began the quest for a new society

How troops refused orders and joined the Russian Revolution

28 February 2017
A mutiny by soldiers was key to forcing out the Tsar in Russia—and a mass revolt of ordinary people made their rebellion possible

Was the Russian Revolution completely spontaneous?

14 February 2017
Workers and soldiers spontaneously rose up against the Tsar many times—but it took organisation to carry this through to victory

Sexual liberation in the Russian Revolution

14 February 2017
The 1917 Russian Revolution saw many gains for LGBT+ rights. These were inseparable from the fight for socialism

Despite the curator, Russian artists shine in new exhibit

14 February 2017
The Royal Academy’s revolutionary Russian art exhibition is impressive, but the working class is rarely seen as fully active within history